Staff
| Charles Newell | Artistic Director |
| Ron OJ Parson | Resident Artist |
| Drew Dir | Resident Dramaturg |
| Cree Rankin | Casting Director/Artists-in-the-Schools Director |
| Jack Tamburri | Artistic Administrator |
| Marc Stubblefield | Director of Production |
| Laura Dieli | Assistant Production Manager/Company Manager |
| Ray Vlcek | Technical Director |
| Lara Musard | Properties Manager |
| Erica Friesen | Costume Shop Manager |
| Marc Chevalier | Master Electrician |
| Rory Murphy | Sound Engineer |
| Cheryl Aponte | Director of Development |
| Jennifer Foughner | Assistant Director of Development for Institutional Relations |
| Colette Gregory | Asst. Dir. of Development for Special Events and Individual Giving |
| Melissa Aburano-Meister | Development Manager |
| Heidi Thompson Saunders | General Manager |
| Zachary Davis | Business Manager |
| Adam Thurman | Director of Marketing and Communications |
| Traci Brant | Associate Director of Marketing/Graphic Designer |
| Milan Pejnovich | Marketing Associate |
| Diane Osolin | Box Office Manager |
| Heather Dumdei | Assistant Box Office Manager/Database Administrator |
| Benjamin Brownson | Assistant Box Office Manager |
| Matthew Sitz | House Manager |
Charles Newell
Artistic Director
Charles Newell has been Artistic Director of Court Theatre since 1994, where he has directed over 30 productions. He made his Chicago directorial debut in 1993 with The Triumph of Love, which won the Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Production. Directorial highlights at Court include The Wild Duck, Caroline, Or Change, Titus Andronicus, Arcadia, Man of La Mancha, Uncle Vanya, Raisin, The Glass Menagerie, Travesties, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Hamlet, The Invention of Love, The Little Foxes, Nora, and The Misanthrope. Charlie has also directed at the Goodman Theatre (Rock ‘n’ Roll), the Guthrie Theater (Resident Director: The History Cycle, Cymbeline), Arena Stage, John Houseman’s The Acting Company (Staff Repertory Director), the California and Alabama Shakespeare Festivals, Juilliard, and New York University. He is the recipient of the 1992 TCG Alan Schneider Director Award. He has served on the Board of Theatre Communications Group, as well as on several panels for the National Endowment for the Arts. Opera directing credits include Marc Blitzstein’s Regina at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and Rigoletto at Opera Theatre of St. Louis. Charlie is a multiple Joseph Jefferson Award (Chicago’s highest theatrical honor) nominee and recipient. Most recently, his production of Caroline, Or Change at Court was the recipient of 4 Joseph Jefferson Awards, including Best Production–Musical and Best Director–Musical.
Ron OJ Parson
Resident Artist
Ron OJ Parson is in his fifth season at Court where he has directed The Piano Lesson, The First Breeze of Summer, Flyin' West and the highly acclaimed, Jeff Award-winning production of Fences. He is the co-founder and former Artistic Director of The Onyx Theatre Ensemble of Chicago. He hails from Buffalo, New York and is a graduate of the University of Michigan's Professional Theatre Program. In Chicago he has directed shows at The Goodman (Let Me Live), Steppenwolf (Wedding Band, a co-production with Congo Square Theatre, Jesus Hopped the ‘A' Train, and The Horn, a co-production with City Lit Theatre), Victory Gardens (Hambone), Congo Square (The Piano Lesson and co-directed and acted in Ali), and Urban Theatre Company (Short Eyes). He has also worked with Black Ensemble Theatre and eta Creative Arts Foundation, most recently directing Robert Johnson: Trick the Devil. For Onyx, he directed East Texas Hot Links, Sty of the Blind Pig, and Flyin' West, among many other shows. Regionally he has directed at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival (Palmer Park), the St. Louis Black Repertory Co. (Jitney), Portland Stage Company (Fences, The Piano Lesson), Virginia Stage Company (Yellowman), Studio Arena Theatre (A Raisin in the Sun), Village Theatre in Issaqua, Washington (One Red Flower), Madison Repertory Theatre (Topdog/Underdog), Actors Theatre of Louisville (Gem of the Ocean), and Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati (Radio Golf). Also an accomplished actor, Parson has worked at various theatres in and out of the U.S. Some TV and film credits include E.R., Early Edition, Turks, Primal Fear, Ali, Barbershop 2, and Drop Squad.
Drew Dir
Resident Dramaturg
Drew is commencing his first season as Resident Dramaturg for Court Theatre, where he oversees dramaturgy for five shows per season. In the past, Drew has worked as a playwright, dramaturg, and director in Chicago and London. Most recently, his short play The Lurker Radio Hour was voted Best Production at Collaboraction’s Sketchbook 8 at the Steppenwolf Garage; his writing has been called “daring” by the Chicago Tribune and “ballsy” by Time Out Chicago. Recently, Drew studied for a master's degree in Text and Performance Studies at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London, where his work focused on the theory and practice of postdramatic adaptation and staging. He is also currently a Lecturer in Theater and Performance Studies at the University of Chicago.
Jack Tamburri
Artistic Administrator
Jack is a writer, director, and performer based in Chicago. He holds a BA in English from the University of Chicago. He has performed with The House Theatre of Chicago, The Building Stage, The Hypocrites, National Headquarters, and The Plagiarists, where he is a company member. Jack has directed for Mary-Arrchie Theatre Co., Chicago Fusion Theater, Collaboraction, the Neo-Futurists, and American Theater Co., and his writing has been performed at the Abbie Hoffman Died For Our Sins Festival and the University of Chicago's SummerINC arts lab. He is a member of the avant garde rock ensemble The Dead Superheroes Orchestra as well as Kevin O'Donnell's Seasonal Spectacular, a bi-monthly benefit concert for local theater companies. At Court Theatre, Jack has assistant directed and dramaturged a number of productions, including Travesties, The Glass Menagerie, and What the Butler Saw.
Marc Stubblefield
Director of Production
Marc is currently in his 9th year as Court's Director of Production. He has also designed lights for four Cour productions, having worked with Artistic Director Charlie Newell on Glass Menagerie and Arcadia, and Ron OJ Parson on First Breeze of Summer and Wait Until Dark. He has worked at the Geffen Playhouse, the Berkshire Theatre Festival, and the Alley Theatre among others. He received a dual MFA in Production Management and Scenic Design from UCLA's school of Theatre, Film and Television, and his BA in Technical Theatre from Rice University.
Cheryl Aponte
Director of Development
Cheryl Aponte came to the Court Theatre from The Nature Conservancy where she served as Director of Philanthropy and Director of Major Gifts for nearly six years. Cheryl was at the University of Chicago for four years prior to that in the Regional Major Gifts program. Cheryl has worked at Chicago Shakespeare Theater and DePaul University, and holds an MA in theater from Northern Illinois University. She and her husband John live in the Ravenswood neighborhood.
